Non-existent future teams of WRC
18/11/2025
From 2027 and onwards the FIA is changing the WRC top class car regulations - same power as Rally2 class cars, but more weight, better aero and less cost? It sounds like the upgraded version of Rally2 cars. WRC27 rules sounds promising and also completely confusing. If top rally class needs a change, then why add second best rally class to the mix? Just make WRC2 top class, right? They already have more manufacturers and significantly more private teams and drivers. But No, FIA has other plans.
The most confusing thing about this is that the only current team that have committed to WRC27 rules are, surprise, surprise, Toyota. Hyundai being that weird, chaotic, can’t decide anything, friend has committed to upgrading Rally2 class car for 2027. M-sport kind of the same story - main priority is to develop a new car, but funding is unknown, so then maybe upgrade the Rally2 Fiesta, but that is only for one year and now M-sport Poland is in charge for WRC27 rules but probably for 2028…it is just confusing for us fans and for the teams as well.
The obvious candidates for WRC27 are current WRC2 teams – Škoda, Toyota, Ford and Citroen. We know everything about Toyota, they will be there in 2027, nothing to talk more about them. About Ford...nothing to add right now, because Fiesta is a dying breed. Škoda on the other hand has great potential to become a top-class team. There is, however, something a bit deeper than just some potential. At the start of 2025 Škoda Motorsport announced that they are reducing their technical and human resources for the 2025 season. Could this be because of the new regulations? Are they focusing more on a new car? Hope so. Škoda team has a great history and success in Rally2 category for many years now, so the foundation for a team is definitely there. The only problem – VAG group economic difficulties. Volkswagen are not selling as much as they used to and that is a big hit on anything motorsport related. F1 Audi team is also eating up as much Volkswagen cash as they can. So economically this doesn’t sound good for Škoda, but let’s hope that there isn’t a problem, and reducing staff means bringing people back to factory to work on something new and exciting. The fans have waited years for Škoda to come back to the top class of rallying.
Jaanus Ree / Red Bull Content Pool
Another new and exciting prospect is the Lancia team. This sounds all and all great that a legendary team is coming back after so many years. The reality is somewhat different. They are replacing Citroen team as the official Stellantis Group manufacturers because Citroen wants to focus more on Formula-E. So, in reality the Lancia Ypsilon Integrale that is going to race in Monte-Carlo in 2026 is just a different looking Citroen C3. The Citroen cars aren’t just disappearing because there still are some private teams that are going to use them for some years going forward. It’s like you have some leftovers in the fridge but you want something different today, but you still need to eat the leftovers. The Citroen C3 car is going to disappear at some point but for now there will be “more” teams in Rally2 class. They are committed and are going to become a factory-backed team in 2026, so they are clearly targeting the new regulations.
Photo: Stellantis
We can speculate what teams can come back, what teams want to come back…but we don’t know anything yet. But no one forbids dreaming, right?
Subaru. Yes, yes, everyone’s favorite rally car of the 90’s and 00’s. The rally heritage that car has, the legendary Impreza. Everybody knows the Impreza WRX, the sound, the looks, and the rivalry with the Mitsubishi. You are either in team red or team blue if you have watched rally in the early 21st century. In my opinion, the team is ready. They have been competing the American Rally Championship for about 20 years. The foundation and human resources are there. The problem has usually been the car, because the modern Impreza is not a great chassis for WRC regulations. However, Subaru has just announced this year a Performance-B STI Concept…the naming hasn’t changed for Subaru, they are always ridiculously long and complicated. But the car looks great, some say it actually resembles the new Toyota GR Corolla, which isn’t a surprise because Subaru is owned by Toyota. The rumors about Subaru coming back to WRC have been floating around for some years. There even were some rumors that Toyota chairman has been almost begging Subaru to participate in WRC and that the Toyota team would help them with the engine and other technical things. So, the dream for Subaru’s comeback isn’t that farfetched. Let’s just wait and see how things escalate and hope for a legendary rally team to show us greatness once again. If Lancia can do it, then Subaru also can.
Prodrive is the other private company linked with rumors of a WRC comeback. They succeeded with Subaru in the 90’s and 2000’s but failed with the MINI project in 2010’s. But which car should they choose now, you may ask? Well, there is an obvious answer – Dacia. The Renault owned manufacturer together with Prodrive have been making amazing strides in rally raid racing and their driver? Sebastian Loeb. You heard that right, the 9-time World Rally Champion is driving a Dacia in sand dunes. Sounds perfect. The problem is…Dacia Dakar project manager François Aupierre have shredded these rumors by saying that they have no plans to be involved in WRC but also stating that he isn’t the one making these decisions. So that doesn’t mean a hard NO so maybe a slight chance for this project to happen? Let’s hope so.
Audi? They have the rallycross based A1, so maybe a chance? No, they are fully fledged inside F1 now, no chance for WRC comeback.
Peugeot? They are busy with WEC, and two manufacturers from Stellantis are already rallying. Not to mention that Peugeot are producing Rally4, Rally5 and Rally6 class cars already. Enough work for them already.
People are stuck in nostalgia and just praying for old manufacturers to make a comeback and to bring WRC back to its glory days. Average Audi fan will tell you that there hasn’t been a better car since Quattro S1 E2, or the casual Polo enjoyer will talk about how they would still be dominating the sport if not for diesel gate. But let’s be real, things must change. What about some completely new names in the sport, some that haven’t even tried their luck in motorsport. Best guess would be some big Chinese manufacturers. Only problem is their obsession with electricity and there isn’t any popular Chinese brand with internal combustion engines. But there still is hope because FIA allows for electric and hybrid motors in the future. The modern car market is very boring to say the least, crossovers or massive electric cars, nothing that resembles a true rally car, but we must adapt. Ford Puma is a crossover after all, so we know that we can make beautiful rally cars despite the road going version being very generic. But that’s exactly the real rally heritage – take a car, a bit of modifying, new rubber, and go set the record stage times. Just like Group A cars, where you could go to the dealership, and buy the same looking Evo VI that Tommi Mäkinen was driving.
Volkswagen Motorsport / Red Bull Content Pool
Us, fans and enthusiasts are left to only wonder about the future of World Rally Championship. We do want and need more teams and manufacturers in the sport. No worries about drivers, there will always be someone that is brave enough to control these monsters. Let’s dream together about a better future for our beloved sport and hope that it brings us more competitors, more cars and maybe some good old forgotten rally locations.
I don’t even want Subaru to come back, it’s not realistic (I hope they come back, Impreza is my favorite car ever).
